


5 Adorable Things Bobby Discovered About John

by Kunoichirin



Series: John Allerdyce/Bobby Drake Drabbles [1]
Category: X-Men (Movieverse), X-Men - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Fluff, M/M, technically
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-19
Updated: 2020-12-05
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:20:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 15,114
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27538246
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kunoichirin/pseuds/Kunoichirin
Summary: How they met and became friends.
Relationships: John Allerdyce/Bobby Drake
Series: John Allerdyce/Bobby Drake Drabbles [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2018363
Comments: 2
Kudos: 25





	1. Kitten Sneeze

The news spread quickly about a new mutant arriving at the school. Apparently, Cyclops had picked him up off the streets because he stole the keys to his car. So he was a pick-pocket.

"Well what was I supposed to do? Leave him there to die? Look at him!" Bobby was outside Professor X's office, his ear pressed to the door. "Sure, he's a bit of a brat, but I'd feel guilty about just leaving him there."

"I gave you back your keys, so can I have my lighter back now?" That must've been the new mutant. Why on earth did he have a lighter? He sounded like he was about Bobby's age.

"No, because you're going to set this room on fire in an attempt to escape." Professor X replied. "Like that time you set a police station on fire to escape."

"Wha- how did you- I didn't- how the heck did you know that?" He sputtered. Bobby was shocked. He did _what_?

"You were just thinking about it. Also, you took his keys again."

"What?"

Bobby heard keys jingle, and the kid snicker. "He's too easy." He then heard Cyclops take his keys back and scoff. "Anyway, what exactly are you? A mind reader?"

"A telepath, to be specific." Professor X corrected. There was a pause. "What, did you think you were the only mutant in the world? The reason Scott brought you here is because this is a school for mutants. We're going to give you an opportunity to do something with your gifts, other than committing arson."

"It was _one_ time! And they were going to send me home, so of course I had to get out of there!" He protested. "I'd rather burn off each and every one of my limbs than go back there."

"What, do they know you're a mutant?" Cyclops guessed.

"Thank god no." He sighed. "But if they did... well, I was better off on the streets." He paused. "What's it to you anyway?"

"John Allerdyce, I believe your name is." Professor X said. "This is a place where you're among friends. You'll never have to live in fear again."

"Bold of you to assume I need friends." John scoffed.

"Bold of _you_ to assume that I don't know that you're lonely." Professor X countered.

"This is still technically kidnapping. I'm here against my will. So don't act like I'm not." John replied. "I'll be out of here sooner or later, and you'll never see me again."

"Not in the state you're in right now, you're not." Cyclops frowned. "Your shivering like it's the middle of winter, and soaking wet from the rain. You probably have a cold, too."

"I was doing perfectly fine, until _you_ came along." He muttered under his breath. "Mark my words, you are going to regret this."

"I already do." Cyclops sighed. "How old are you, anyway? Like, nine?"

"Ten, thank you very much." John scowled. Bobby grinned. He _was_ his age! "So when can I have my lighter back?"

"When you aren't actively thinking about setting Scott on fire." Professor X replied simply. Through the crack in the door, Bobby saw Scott glare at someone. He couldn't see the new mutant from where he was.

"Riiiiight. Well, I'm going to get Storm to deal with you instead. She's better with kids than me." Scott sighed. The door suddenly opened, causing Bobby to fall over. Scott looked down at him in surprise, then sighed. "Bobby... what have we said about eavesdropping?"

"That it's rude... I know, I know, but I couldn't help it! I was curious." Bobby explained, then looked over at the new kid, who was indeed soaking wet, and shivering like it was the middle of winter. "Um. Hi."

"Oh, this is perfect." Professor X smiled. "As your punishment for eavesdropping, you will be keeping an eye on John for us. It's better for him to be with people his own age after all."

" _What_ _?!_ " John glared at the professor. "This is cruel."

"Well, I'll let you have your lighter back." Professor X tossed a small lighter to him, that was painted to look something like a shark. The professor then looked at Bobby very seriously. "Don't let him set anything on fire."

Just as he finished saying that, John was suddenly engulfed in flame. Bobby shrieked in surprise, but the fire then gathered into a ball in his hand. He was now dry (though his clothes were somewhat singed).

"That's a bit better." John sighed in relief. He clenched his hand into a fist, and the fire went out. He smirked at Bobby. "What, never seen a person catch on fire before?"

"I bet _you_ have." Scott rolled his eyes.

"They deserved it. Relax, I'm not actually going to set anyone on fire." He paused. "Purposely."

"Whelp, he's your problem now." Scott said to Bobby before passing him out the door. "Good luck." John flicked open the lighter and closed it again, looking as though he was considering something.

"Clothes count as the person, John." Professor X stated firmly. "Don't set Scott on fire." He looked over at Bobby. "Show him around, would you?"

"Oh! Yes, Professor Xavier." He nodded, then smiled nervously at John. "Follow me." John groaned, but followed him out the door anyway. "So... John, right? I'm Bobby. Welcome to Xavier's School For Gifted Youngsters."

"That... is the dumbest name for a school I have ever heard in my life." John commented. "But I'll admit, it's pretty fancy. By the way, does he always just pick people up off the streets?"

"No, many of us were sent here for school by our parents. Some of us came here all on their own. Yes, there are a couple of people who were rescued from... bad places, but the professor just wants us mutants to live our best lives." Bobby explained.

John seemed to be shivering again. "Geez, is it just me, or is it freezing in here?"

"Well, it isn't me, so yeah, I think it is just you." Bobby shrugged. "Maybe you did catch a cold."

"That's ridiculous, I don't get-" John paused, sniffing sharply. "Ha-tsu!" He sneezed. Bobby jumped, a bit startled. He blinked at him, then chuckled to himself. That was more of a squeak than a sneeze. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing." _That was the cutest sneeze I have ever heard! He was intimidating at first, but now he kind of reminds me of a kitten._ "So... guess you've never met another mutant before, huh."

"Nope." John shook his head. "I guess it's kind of cool. What's that one guy's... uh, Scott or whatever. Laser eyes?"

"Yes, actually." Bobby informed him. "His goggles are kind of a dead give away. A lot of us just call him Cyclops. He's a teacher here."

"Really? Him? He doesn't seem to like kids all that much." John scoffed. "And what about you? What are your powers?"

Bobby had been waiting for this. He smiled. "Hold out your hand." John stared at him for a second, as though he was worried this was a trap of some kind. He ended up holding out his hand anyway. When Bobby took it in his own hand, John jumped.

"JESUS your hands are cold!" He exclaimed. Bobby laughed.

"Yeah, well there's a reason for that." He replied. "I'm not so good at controlling it for big things yet, but," John flinched when something else cold formed in his hand. When Bobby retracted his hands, there was a life-sized ice rose in his hand.

"Oh. I really should've seen that coming." John said after a second. "I mean, your eyes are a pretty icy blue." Bobby felt his cheeks flush red for some reason. "How did you just make that? It's so detailed."

"Practice makes perfect, I guess." Bobby scratched the back of his neck, a little embarrassed.

"It's a really cool ability." John complimented him, then paused. "No pun intended." He thought for a moment. "How did you end up here?"

"Oh, my parents thought it was a private school for all ages or something." Bobby shrugged. "It's nice here once you get used to it." John scoffed. "But... I'm guessing you don't want to get used to it. Can't imagine why. Isn't this better than the streets?"

"Well, on the streets, it's every person for themselves. There are no rules, no one to tell you what to do, and you're basically free." John explained. "Whereas here... is the opposite. But you know what they say. Rules are meant to be broken."

Bobby stared at him for a little bit. "You should at least give it a chance before you decide it's awful. Wouldn't you rather hone your abilities and do something good in the world?"

"Not particularly, no." John shrugged. Bobby's jaw somewhat dropped. "Don't look so surprised. Not everyone in the world is a goody two-shoes like you. If that were so, we wouldn't have problems in the world to begin with. You must be pretty sheltered to not know how the world is. You do know why we have to hide our gifts, yeah?"

"Well, we might scare people, and-"

"And they'll kill us." John finished for him. Bobby's eyes widened. "People don't like what they don't understand. So they try to get rid of it. Why do you think racism is a thing? Or sexism? Or homophobia, or transphobia? They simply don't understand it. And they don't try to, either."

"Well that's dumb." Bobby frowned. "But you only proved my point. If it bothers you so much, learn to do something about it. By staying." John was about to protest, but ultimately shut his mouth because he knew he was right.

"Fine. Doesn't mean I have to like it." He grumbled. Bobby grinned.

"First order of business then, we should make sure you aren't sick. Come on, I'm going to introduce you to Jean." He said, grabbing John by the wrist and pulling him along.

"Wait, what am I supposed to do with this?" John asked, indicating the ice rose.

"I don't know; let it melt?" Bobby shrugged. "It's just ice."

"What? No!" John frowned at him, then shyly looked at the ground. "No one's ever given something to me before. I think it'd just be rude to let it melt." Bobby's heart dropped.

"No one's ever...?" After a moment of thinking, he brightened back up. "Then we'll store it in the freezer for now. Until we can find a better place for it." Bobby figured it was best not to ask about his past, since it seemed rather unpleasant. 

Bringing it to the kitchen, John put it in the freezer, trying to be careful since it was delicate. When it was successfully stored, right after John closed the freezer,

"Ha-tsu!" Bobby couldn't help but smile. John glanced over at him after wiping his nose on his sleeve. "What? Why do you keep smiling like that?"

"It's nothing, I swear!" Bobby assured him. John narrowed his eyes, cheeks slightly pink.

"You said that last time. What is it?" He demanded.

"Let's just get you taken care of, okay?" Bobby said to him. John's eyes widened and he looked at him as though he'd just said he was going to kill him. "...What?"

"Get me _what?!_ "

"Taken... care of? You know, checked out? Make sure you aren't sick?"

Realization dawned on John's face. "...Oh. Um. Right." 

"What, did you think I was going to kill you or something? Were you in the mafia?" Bobby joked. John didn't seem to think it was very funny.

"No, I wasn't in the mafia. But mess with the wrong people, and you're as good as dead. This one time, I was running down this ally from a bunch of crooks, and it ended up being a dead end. Had I not used my fire, they likely would've... are you okay?"

Bobby was staring at him in utter shock. Before John could say another word, he grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him into a hug. John tensed, but then relaxed. "No one is ever going to hurt you again."

"Geez, dramatic much?" John chuckled. "I've survived this long, I think I'm okay. You don't need to say things that ultimately won't be true. We're all going to get hurt by someone, somehow."

Bobby let go of him and quickly stepped back. "Sorry sorry sorry, I overreacted!" He apologized quickly. "I just... how long have you been on the streets?"

"A year or two maybe." John shrugged. Bobby saddened. "Hey, hey, don't look at me like that. Weren't you going to bring me somewhere to get, uh, 'checked out', or something?"

"Right. I was." Bobby said in a monotone voice. John followed him out the door. _Did I say something wrong?_ He thought to himself. "Jean has been here longer than almost anyone, other than Professor X. She's skilled in the medical field, so she's basically the school nurse."

"What, does she have some sort of healing mutation?" John guessed.

"No, she's another telepath." Bobby replied. John hunched his shoulders.

"Greeeeeat." He grumbled sarcastically. "Another mind reader."

"You don't like having people know your thoughts, huh. Is there some backstory for that too?" Bobby asked, not sure if he really wanted to know.

"Nah, I just don't like people in my head. I like having my secrets. When someone can see everything about a person, including everything that goes through their head, they have the upper hand." John explained.

"So it makes you feel vulnerable?" Bobby translated.

"I was trying to avoid using that word, but yeah." John sighed. "I hate that word. It's been used so many times in my life that I'm sick of it. 'oh you're just a vulnerable kid! This'll be easy.' and then you burn their butt and suddenly they have the upmost respect for you. Or, they're out to kill you from then on."

"Sounds like you've made a lot of enemies. Didn't you have any friends?" Bobby asked, already knowing the answer.

John barked a sarcastic laugh, though Bobby noticed a sad look in his eyes. "I have no use for friends. They only let you down in the end. So scared that they'll do anything to save their own skins."

"Did that happen to you?" 

"No, but I've seen it happen more times than I can count. And traitors don't deserve to live." John shuddered. "I'm guessing you've never had to watch another man die, have you?"

"Why on earth did you even _consider_ going back to the streets!? It sounds terrible!" Bobby exclaimed. "Surely you're home couldn't have been so bad that-"

"DON'T." John warned him sharply. Bobby immediately shut up. "You don't get it. That's alright, I wouldn't expect you to. But don't pretend that you do. Okay?" Bobby nodded curtly.

An awkward silence fell between them, only filled by their own footsteps. He was right. Bobby didn't understand. Nor would he ever, he was sure. After all, his family was great. The only pain he really knew was his brother being annoying.

"Sorry I snapped at you like that." John said after a moment. "I'm not used to people asking questions. No one I've ever met really cared about anyone but themselves. So... you're a nice change of pace."

Bobby suddenly felt like he was the luckiest person alive. He smiled brightly. "Thanks." John looked away quickly.

"Don't let that go to your head." He advised him. "It was just something I observed when talking to you. It was a fact, not a compliment."

"I can still take it as a compliment if I want to." Bobby pointed out. John rolled his eyes. "By the way, if this isn't too nosy, where did you get that lighter?"

"Ah. Well, where do you think? I stole it." John told him. Bobby cocked an eyebrow at him. "Well, I couldn't rely on street lamps and candles all the time, could I? So I stole a lighter. It's a fairly simple answer. I'm sure I didn't actually have to tell you."

"Why a shark?"

"Hm?"

"I asked why a shark." Bobby repeated. "Is there any particular reason, or...?"

"Well..." John thought for a moment. "I don't know. I guess it was cool. Did you know that you're more likely to be killed by a deer than a shark?"

Bobby thought about that. "Is- is that a metaphor, or-"

"No, stop overthinking things." John laughed, lightly punching Bobby in the shoulder. 

"Not anything like... it's got a bad reputation, but underneath it's just as scared as you?" Bobby came up with that on the spot, but it seemed to make John uncomfortable. He got a sense that he was right. "I'm kidding. No metaphor. Got it."

They arrived at a white room with high tech medical equipment, so John assumed that they had arrived at their destination. John hesitated. Why on earth did a school need so much medical stuff?

"Because accidents happen." John jumped, nearly pulling out his lighter, laying eyes on a woman with somewhat short brown-red hair. "And we need to be prepared to treat anything." 

"Hey, Jean." Bobby greeted the woman. John looked at her warily, and Bobby wondered why.

"Hello, Bobby. Who's this?" She asked.

"He's the new mutant, John." Bobby introduced. She stared at him for a moment, making John even more uncomfortable.

"John... Allerdyce? I think I recognize that name..." She thought for a second or two, then looked at him in surprise. "You're that missing kid that was in the paper a year or so ago!" John grimaced. 

"Yeah, well he's here now, and staying here." Bobby told her, somewhat passive-aggressively.

"Right. My bad, sorry." She said, looking as though she'd just seen something horrible. "So... he's sick? Alright, I'm just going to check something." She reached out to put her hand on his forehead, and he flinched so hard he nearly fell over.

John flicked open his lighter, and fire flew at her hand in defense. She gasped in shock and immediately pulled her hand away, glaring at him. Her glare turned to a look of pity as she saw him in a defensive position, eyes shut tightly as though he was expecting to be hit.

"Hey, hey, hey, John it's okay!" Bobby gently put his hands on his shoulders as if to ground him. "She's not going to hurt you." Bobby put out the fire floating in the air, then turned to Jean, about to apologize, but he saw a horrified look in her eyes.

"I'm not your mother." She said after a moment. John risked opening one eye. "No one here is going to hurt you, okay? You're safe here, I promise."

Instead of replying, he sneezed. She blinked at him, a bit startled, then smiled. _Why is his sneeze so fricken cute?_ He shoved that thought out quickly, but it was too late. Jean smirked at him knowingly.

"You're right." She told him. "But he doesn't need to know that."

"What?" John looked at the two of them in confusion. "Wait, what don't I need to know?" Bobby hid his face in his hands and Jean laughed. 

"It's nothing, John."


	2. Giggle Snorts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John gets hurt and and Bobby ends up caring for him because Jean and Scott are away on some mission. He also ends up learning an interesting little secret of John's.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes John's laugh is giggle snorts and no one will ever be able to tell me otherwise.

"This is why we can't have nice things, John." Bobby sighed, tending to his twisted ankle. "You're too damn reckless."

"Oh, shut up, Bobby. You were the one who froze the ground in front of me." John pointed out.

"We discussed the entire plan beforehand, John! Weren't you listening?" Bobby looked up at John, who was sheepishly staring out the window. Bobby rolled his eyes. "Honestly, you have to listen for a change. We're thirteen now, John. We've finally started training to be X-men, and this is one of this first things you do."

"Hey, I knew what I was doing. I think you need to be a little more flexible. Ready to adapt at any given moment." John replied. "That's how battle works. Since when did they start involving complicated plans?"

"Since always, John!" Bobby exclaimed. "But it's not their fault or mine that we aren't as perfect as you. We didn't grow up like you did." 

"Not my fault you guys aren't as great as me either." John shrugged. "I'm just saying; instinct is better than any plan. Besides, plans are merely guidelines. I knew what I was doing."

"Well, we can't coordinate and work as a team if you're going to play lone wolf and try to do it all on your own." Bobby told him firmly. "That's the point of a plan. And we were aiming to defeat that thing. How many fights did you get into that you didn't end up running away in the end?"

"Set things on fire and run. It's an easy tactic, and it kept me alive. That's the point of a battle. To survive, right?" John countered. "Look, I'm sorry I've never fought for anything or anyone other than myself, okay? That's not how it worked."

"Yeah? Well get used to it, because that's what's happening from now on." Bobby narrowed his eyes. He sighed. "Listen, we're all just trying to do our best out there. And I know you had the best intentions, but you have to start working with a team, okay? We can't win if one of us is doing their own thing. I can't have your back if you're going to do that."

"I don't need you to have my back." John said, getting a tad irritated. "I can take care of myself. You worry about you, I'm fine."

"You don't seem very fine to me." Bobby emphasized his point by poking John in the foot. John squeaked and immediately pulled his foot back. "Oh! Sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you."

John hesitated before allowing Bobby to continue to tend to his ankle. "Yes. That's what you did." He seemed a little more on edge now, and Bobby wondered why. Surely it hadn't hurt too badly. Maybe he was just being a baby.

Or...

Bobby experimentally brushed his finger down John's foot- and got kicked in the face.

"Oi, what are you doing?!" John demanded, glaring down at where Bobby was covering his nose in pain. "Oh, oops." Carefully getting off the bed and on all fours, he scoot himself beside Bobby to see if he was alright. "Sorry about that, I didn't mean to kick you."

"John..." Bobby spoke his name in an oddly foreboding tone. John no longer felt safe.

"Wh-why did you say my name like that? I don't like that look you're giving me..." John started slowly backing away from him. "Don't you dare."

"I think I _will_ dare."

"No no no no- wait!" Too late. Bobby pounced on top of him, pinning him to the hard wood floor. "You don't want to do this, I will make you regret it! I'm warning you!"

"Well, we should first get rid of this so you don't burn me." Bobby ignored him and froze John's pocket, blocking his lighter from his grasp. "Brace yourself."

"Wait, don't-!"

"Too late!" Bobby didn't hesitate further, digging his fingers into John's sides, receiving a startling shriek before he fell into a fit of giggles. John shoved at Bobby's hands to no avail; Bobby kept finding new little spots to tweak that would leave John a mess.

Never in his three years of knowing John did he ever think he'd have him below him, tickling the crap out of him. He also hadn't expected the flood of giggles that poured from his mouth.

"Yohohou are sohoho dead!" John managed to shout, trying to wriggle out from under Bobby, still with no luck. "Ihihihihi'm going to sehehet you on fihihihire when I gehehehehet out!"

"Good luck with that." Bobby taunted. "You don't scare me. It's hard take someone in your position seriously, y'know. I never expected you'd have such adorable giggles, John."

"Shuhuhuhut uhuhup!" John protested, trying to fight off the hands attacking his sides. "Ihihihi'm nohohohot cute!" _Oh, is that what's pissing you off? Thanks for the tip._ Bobby thought to himself, beginning to target his hips.

"Pa-lease. This is the cutest thing in the world. You should see the look on your face right now." Bobby teased, squeezing his hips, drawing out a startled yelp. It was followed by those giggles, making Bobby smile along.

John was trying to cover his mouth with one hand out of embarrassment, his giggles only increasing. "Stohohohohohop! This is oprehehehehession!" That statement was followed with a snort as Bobby managed to get his hands under John's shirt.

"Do my ears deceive me? Was that a snort I heard?" Bobby fake gasped, kneading into John's bare skin. His giggle snorts were the cutest thing Bobby had ever heard in his life. "I didn't know you were capable of such sounds!"

"Nohohohoho, gohohoho awahahahay!" John whined, attempting to roll away out of Bobby's attack. But with Bobby sitting on top of him, that was close to impossible. And John certainly didn't have the required energy for it. But there was no way in hell he was just going to admit defeat just yet.

Bobby had to duck as John tried to kick him in the head. "Hey, that was just rude." He pretended to be hurt, and dug his fingers into John's hips, getting him to shriek again, which Bobby found hilarious. "Kicking me is what got you into this mess in the first place."

John couldn't respond, he was laughing too hard. He had one shot, but here goes. John grabbed Bobby's shoulders and used all his strength to roll the two of them over, switching their positions.

In a bit of shock, Bobby blinked at him in surprise before John just flopped on top of him, completely out of breath. _Oops. I hadn't meant to exhaust him. Wow, he's super warm._

"Sorry about that, I didn't mean to go overboard." Bobby apologized. John rolled off him, sprawled across the floor, his chest rising and falling, trying to recover his lost breath.

"You... are so... dead." He wheezed. "Just you wait... keep one eye open tonight, Bobby." Bobby sat up and smirked at him. 

"It's hard to be afraid when you're face is flushed like that. Not to mention that you probably can't even move very much at the moment." He taunted. John flopped one arm over his face.

"Never again. I'll kick your ass."

"Uh-huh. Sure."

The door suddenly opened, startling the two boys. Storm and Kitty stood in the doorway, looking extremely concerned. "Are you boys okay? We thought we heard shouting."

"Oh, sorry about that." Bobby apologized, scratching the back of his neck sheepishly. "Just discovered something really funny."

"Don't you dare." John half whispered.

"Weren't you supposed to be tending to John's ankle?" Storm pointed out. 

"He kicked me in the face." Bobby told her.

"Hey!" John sat up and glared at him. "It was an accident! And anyway, you deserved it."

"So... that doesn't explain why John looks like he just ran twenty miles without a break." Kitty cocked an eyebrow. John grumbled something under his breath and Bobby laughed.

"Well, if you really want to know..."

"If you touch me, I swear I will break both of your kneecaps and set you on fire." John threatened. All three of them stared at John, the girls in horror, and Bobby cocking an eyebrow at him like 'really?' "I mean it."

"Sure you do." Bobby rolled his eyes. "But fine, I won't tell them." He helped John to his feet, careful to keep him balanced while he kept weight off his foot. "I'd recommend just keeping weight off it and you'll be fine. It's not too bad."

Storm and Kitty looked at the two of the skeptically, but turned and left them alone. The pair of boys exchanged a look, and they made a silent promise never to discuss the events of that day ever again.

But Bobby would remember it forever.


	3. Head Pats

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bobby discovers that John has surprisingly soft hair.

John's hair was a mess in the morning. Bobby always found it hilarious as John would spend a long part of the morning just trying to get it under control. Sometimes, he'd just give up and tie it back. It was just barely long enough for that.

This morning wasn't one of those mornings. Apparently, John hadn't slept much last night, so his hair wasn't such a disaster. He could easily just contain it by running his hands through it.

"'Morning." Bobby greeted when John entered the kitchen. Oddly enough, John had started drinking coffee (He steals Scott's coffee, but Scott never notices/doesn't mind), so Bobby had made a cup for him.

"'Merf." John mumbled halfheartedly, taking a seat next to Bobby. He glanced at Bobby suspiciously when Bobby slid the coffee over to him.

"I didn't put salt in it this time, I promise." Bobby answered his unspoken question. The one time he had was when he was getting back at John for 'accidentally' setting fire to the curtains in his room. John had pretended he hadn't known drapes were flammable.

John only stopped staring at him after he sipped the coffee, and realized that he had, in fact, used sugar. They sat in a long silence, just getting used to being in the waking world.

It was a rather dreary morning, with a light drizzle and clouds hiding the sun. Not that the sun was up fully anyway. Bobby figured it couldn't be much later than five thirty a.m.

"So... what kept you up?" Bobby asked finally, uncomfortable in the silence.

"I don't know, just..." John sighed, thinking for a moment. "Thinking. A lot. I can't seem to stop overthinking things lately, like... why should we constantly have to live in fear and hide ourselves away like this? We live in sanctuary while other mutants are dying out there, and we're doing nothing about it. It makes me sick."

Bobby frowned. He was pretty sure everyone had thoughts like that at some point in their lives. "I don't have an answer for that, but you can always come sleep with me if something's bothering you." 

John laughed. "Yeah, I'll pass. You don't need to feel obligated to deal with my problems." Taking a long sip of coffee, he looked over at Bobby. "But, uh, thanks anyway."

"The offer will remain on the table then." Bobby shrugged. "Just in case." His eyes shifted to a couple stray strands of hair hanging in front of his face than John didn't appear to notice. Out of some kind of instinct, he reached forward and brushed the strands out of his face and back with the rest of his hair.

It was surprisingly soft and fluffy, which actually somewhat shocked Bobby. He sat there, mesmerized by the feeling of it. John glanced at him uncomfortably, with a hint of confusion. 

"You can take you're hand off my head now." He said after a beat of silence.

"Oh!" Bobby retracted his hand immediately. "Right. Sorry, I didn't mean to... to do that."

"Nah, it's... it's fine." John still looked mildly confused. "I'm just still not very used to physical contact that isn't... never mind. It's not important." It was true. For a long time, John would flinch when Bobby tried to establish any kind of physical contact. And he still did for just about everyone else.

Bobby already knew that his old household wasn't a pleasant place, so he never asked about it. But it always pained him when John flinched. It filled with both anger and pity, but if John knew that, he'd only get upset with him. He didn't want anyone's pity.

"But if you do ever need to talk..."

"I'm fine, Bobby." John interrupted firmly. "Just drop it, okay?" Bobby sighed, but didn't say anything else. He knew that when John said to drop it, he meant it. And Bobby didn't want to upset him further.

The morning went by slowly, the minutes seeming like hours. That sat in silence, awaiting the hour when they were expected to be in class. It would be a while, and the silence certainly wasn't helping.

"Well you boys are up early." The two jumped, but relaxed when they saw that it was only Storm. "Sorry. Didn't mean to scare ya." She chuckled, taking a seat across from them. John quietly sipped at his coffee. "It's weird to see you two up at this hour. What's up?"

"Woke up and couldn't go back to sleep." Bobby shrugged.

"Thinking." John followed up, not looking up from his coffee when Storm looked at him funny.

"You? Thinking? Is something the matter?" She asked, half joking, half concerned. "It wasn't some bad dream, was it?"

"No, it was just some loud thoughts. It's nothing." John grumbled.

"Are you sure?"

"I tried already." Bobby said quickly, noticing John's discomfort. "He doesn't want to talk about it." Storm cocked an eyebrow, but gave in and sighed.

"Well, alright." She frowned. "But not talking about it will only make it worse. Believe me, I know." John refused to look up at her. "Whelp! As much as I'd love to stay and chat, Mr. Grumpypants is giving off some vibes I don't want to start the morning with." John scoffed at that. "See you kids later. I won't let you sleep through my class, just so you know."

"See you later." Bobby replied as she got up and left the room. Once she was out of sight, he gave John a look. He hardly noticed it. "Is it really so bad that you have to be so brooding? I hate when you're like this."

John flinched, gripping the coffee mug tightly in anticipation. Bobby was confused, and startled. Was it something he said? There were some phrases or words he'd learned never to use around John, because they triggered memories.

He was braced for impact, and Bobby immediately felt guilty. For a moment, he paused, and wondered if... perhaps... he could override that memory with something different. His body acting more or less on it's own, as his hand slowly lifted up towards the top of John's head.

His fingers gently slid through his hair, softly caressing his scalp, hopefully in a calming manner. His mother used to do this for him when he was upset in some sense of the word.

Dark brown eyes peered up at him in confusion, but his posture relaxed. "Whaaaaaat are you doing?" He asked, but didn't shift away. Bobby pulled his hand back, a little confused with himself as to why he did that.

"Sorry."

There was a short pause.

"Well, you didn't have to stop." John mumbled, nervously averting his gaze. Bobby raised an eyebrow questioningly, then smiled. Hesitantly, he continued. He watched as John's shoulders relaxed and he closed his eyes.

It felt a little odd to be petting his best friend's head, but it also just felt... _right_. Deciding it was best not to dwell on those thoughts, he ignored them and continued anyway.

The smallest hint of a smile appeared on John's face, only making Bobby smile wider. Bobby had started a mental list of things about John that reminded him of a cat, because there were several, and this was to be added.

Here they sat, at maybe six in the morning, simply enjoying each other's company through an interesting tactic. Perhaps the best way to start the day, even if the events leading up to the moment were a little dark.

But as they say, after every storm comes a rainbow. Not that that was very relevant whatsoever, it just seemed to fit. And Bobby liked metaphors because they always seemed to confuse John, and his confused face was one of the funniest things in the world.

"You sure you don't mind this?" Bobby asked. He waited a moment for a response, but John never replied. "John?" He looked back over at him, and noticed that the only thing keeping his head up was his arm propped up on the table.

_Oh. He fell asleep._ Bobby continued to stare at him for a bit, amazed that he could fall asleep with someone touching him. Even if John acted fine with it, Bobby always noticed that he remained on edge if someone was touching him in any sort of way.

Perhaps he was just too tired that morning to care. Or maybe he was comfortable enough with Bobby by now. Or, another possibility that crossed Bobby's mind, was that petting his hair was a soothing feeling, and made him more relaxed.

If that was the case, this tactic could be very useful in the future, considering that John seemed to easily get stressed out, and his only method of relief was flicking that lighter of his on and off constantly.

Bobby couldn't help but gaze at John's peaceful expression, how untroubled he looked, which was rather different from his usual demeanor. It had been about three or four years since Bobby had first met him, but not once had he seen him so tranquil and serene. 

For the first time ever, he seemed to be content. Bobby smiled at the thought. Finally, a moment where he could forget everything he went through, everything Bobby could never understand, and just... be.

Despite the fact that John was now asleep, Bobby continued to gently comb through his hair with his fingers, as though the gesture was his way of staying with John, even though he wasn't going anywhere anyway.

He froze when John let out a sigh, leaning against him, head resting on his shoulder. Bobby was suddenly afraid he'd wake up and freak out or something, so he remained perfectly still, afraid of waking him.

When he was sure John was fine, he continued in the small gesture of petting his head, wondering to himself why he was still entertaining this. He should've been a little more concerned about how John would feel about this, but then again, it was John who had said it was okay in the first place.

It felt as though that moment could last forever, their heartbeats syncing with one another, quietly beating together like one. The soft aroma of coffee filled the air, and the dim light through the window provided a low glow to the room.

In that moment, Bobby considered how wonderful it would be for this to not be a one-time thing. How incredible it would be if they could do this whenever. But they were best friends. This was the kind of thing couples did. And it would be weird for them to do it, since they were practically brothers, right?

So he would enjoy it while it lasted, leaning his own head against John's affectionately, knowing this would never ever happen again. He'd just have to accept that happy moments like this couldn't last, but he would remember it till the day he died.

John would kill him if Bobby allowed anyone else to see this scene, so it would have to come to an end sooner or later, considering it was nearly seven in the morning, which was around the time others started to awaken and start their days.

But surely it wouldn't hurt anyone if he let it go on for a little longer.

"Awww...." Bobby nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard a voice coo from the doorway. He immediately turned his head at the entrance to see Kitty standing there with a stupid grin on her face. "How adorable."

"When did you get here?" Bobby whispered, narrowing his eyes. He should've noticed her sooner.

"A few minutes ago." She shrugged, then continued to grin at him. "I always knew there was something going on between the two of you."

"What? No! Nothing's going on between us! He just fell asleep!" Bobby protested, careful to keep his voice low as to not wake up John.

"With you petting his hair? That's even more adorable." She teased, walking over to the island and sitting down across from them. "You know, he would never know if you just took this opportunity to kiss him."

Bobby's face flushed red almost immediately. "No, that is all kinds of creepy! I would never do that! He just fell asleep, and happened to lean on me. There is nothing wrong with that, and there is certainly nothing going on. We're like brothers, Kitty."

"And? Have you ever heard of incest?" Kitty pointed out. Bobby looked at her in utter disgust. "I'm kidding, relax. Geez, you're so uptight, it's hardly fun to tease you. But I would not describe your relationship as 'brothers'. Because you two are totally soulmates. Your mutations are even fire and ice. That's not a coincidence I bet."

"Kitty, you've always been a conspiracy theorist. I've listened to you rant about all kinds of things, and never once have I said anything. But this," Bobby frowned. "Is taking it too far."

"I've theorized that dreams are windows into alternate universes; that the sun is a living fire demon sent to slowly consume the earth; that Professor X is actually an all knowing messiah sent to guide mutants through existence," Kitty began. "And you think that _this_ is taking it too far? Pah-lease. Some of my theories are crazy enough to be the plots of movies. This is one of my more realistic theories."

Bobby stared at her for a moment. "You have never mentioned those theories ever."

"Yeah, I came up with them last night while I was writing in my conspiracy journal." Kitty said casually. "But seriously, it's not just a brick of ice up there is it? Anyone with half a brain could see the chemistry between you guys. The only thing I could think of keeping you two apart is internalized homophobia on both ends."

"..." Bobby continued to stare at her blankly. "What does that even mean?"

"Oh, forget it." Kitty sighed. "You're hopeless. I'm sure you'll understand me one day."

"I don't think anyone will ever understand you."

"Fair enough."

"In any case," Bobby continued, debating on waking John. "There's only a few hours before class, so I should probably wake him anyway."

"You don't want to." Kitty leaned her chin into her hands, looking at him as though she knew exactly what he was thinking. "You know you don't. Because then the moment will be over, and you're afraid you'll never have another moment like this."

"What, so you're a mind reader now too?" Bobby growled at her.

"No, you're face says everything." She explained. "You don't need to get angry with me just 'cause I'm right. I won't tell you what to do, because if you aren't willing to try for yourself, then he deserves better."

"He _does_ deserve better anyway." Bobby replied. "He deserves the world. And even though- even if I wanted to give it to him, I couldn't. So it's a good thing I'm not in love with him, and he isn't in love with me. We are just friends. Best friends, but only friends."

Now it was Kitty's turn to stare at him blankly. "You're even more of a dumbass than I thought." She said it almost angrily, getting up and stalking out of the room as if she couldn't stand to be near him anymore.

_Good riddance._ Bobby thought to himself, annoyed. _No, she doesn't deserve that. I should apologize later. But apologize for what? She shouldn't get angry when her 'theories' don't end up being true. I didn't do anything wrong._

"Hey," Bobby nudged John gently. "We've still got a couple hours, but I figure you'd like those hours to wake up." John stirred, but only snuggled closer. Red creeped onto Bobby's cheeks. "H-hey, John, you gotta wake up now."

"Why's it so frickin' cold?" John mumbled, slowly moving into an upright position off of Bobby. "Is it the middle of winter or something?"

"No, you were just-" Bobby paused, wondering if he should tell John he was sleeping on him or not. "It's just cold in here, I guess." He drew his hand back to himself quickly before John noticed it was still on his head.

John ran his hand through his hair to try and fix it, since it was somewhat messy again. "Sorry, did I fall asleep again? I tried staying awake, but whatever you were doing felt... nice." He hesitated before speaking again. "That wasn't weird, was it?"

"Yeah, kinda." Bobby chuckled. John looked away from him, a little embarrassed. It wasn't actually weird, but for some reason, Bobby made himself think it was. They were friends, and Kitty was delusional.

"You were the one doing it, so you're the weird one." John retaliated.

"I am, aren't I." Bobby sighed, thinking about the last hour or so. He was weird. He thought weird things. Kitty was wrong about him liking John like that, right? Then the only other conclusion was that Bobby was just weird. "Sorry."

"Don't apologize." John rolled his eyes. "I was joking. What was with the serious tone? We're all a little weird." He pointed out, nudging Bobby playfully. "Don't take things so seriously."

"Oh. You're right. Sorry." Bobby paused, realizing he just apologized again. "Whoops. Sorry." Pause. "Dang it."

"Stop constantly apologizing, you never have to apologize to me, alright?" John told him, taking a sip of his somewhat cold coffee. "Sorry is just a word, and people throw it around to seem sincere, so you forgive them. I hate that."

"I suppose that makes sense." He frowned. "But when I say it, I mean it. So... sor-"

"If you say sorry one more time, I'm going to set your pants on fire." John interrupted. Bobby shut his mouth immediately, and John sighed. "Whelp, I should probably get dressed before I accidentally go to class in pajamas." He got up from the island, and headed for the door. "See you later."

"See you..." Bobby half waved after him. "Yeah. Just friends."

_Definitely._


	4. Two Left Feet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bobby's solution to everything is ice skating. Too bad John can't skate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been debating this one for a while, because I can easily see John as a badass dancer, but it's fun to think that he's clumsy and has two left feet.
> 
> Wait, oh! Maybe, just to be funny, Bobby can skate, but not dance, and John can dance, but not skate. BAM! I'm a genius. I impress myself sometimes.
> 
> Jk, I'm depressed, lol.

Growing up with John, it became second nature to Bobby to know when he was upset. It honestly shocked him when people remained oblivious to the obvious signs that something was up.

There was always a slight change in his voice, very slight monotone tone. His shoulders would become visibly tense, and he tended to avoid eye contact. Maybe the most obvious sign was when he would pay attention to nothing other than his lighter, flicking the cap on and off, seemingly in a trance.

Never in a million years would John tell him what was wrong unless Bobby somehow guessed it or figured it out. Some problems were never resolved because of his stubbornness. And Bobby was sure they were still problems, even if not huge ones.

In fact, Bobby had gotten a notebook that he wrote all his notes and observations and theories in whenever he noticed that John was upset. Because the only way to get him to talk, was to figure it out.

Today was one of those days. Bobby knew it from the moment he saw him enter the common room that morning: something was very, very wrong. Nobody else seemed to notice it, considering no one else spared him more than a glance.

Sun shone through the windows, giving a soft glow to the room, and revealed the slight shine to John's eyes. He'd been crying. But it was a while ago. Probably about an hour or two before he came downstairs.

He flopped down next to Bobby and sighed. He didn't have to say a single word. Bobby studied him quickly, noticing his hands were twitching ever so slightly. Something must have scared him. 

That narrowed it down to a nightmare of some sort. At least, that was the only logical conclusion Bobby could think of so early in the morning. It must've been a horrible nightmare; it was actually very likely that John may have had suffered a panic attack, and had to calm himself all on his own.

Guilt flooded Bobby's senses. While he had no way of knowing, he still felt that responsibility like he should have known and done something about it. He hated that feeling, but it never went away until he resolved the problem.

Right then and there, he vowed to himself to figure it out and make John forget all about it. Or at least put the memories to rest, whatever they were. Only eight-thirty in the morning, and Bobby had his entire day planned.

All of his other responsibilities were chucked out the window, and he would dedicate every minute of the day figuring out exactly how to approach the situation and improve it. For now, he'd start with a friendly,

"Good morning!" He tried to give John a gentle smile, but he didn't even look up at him. It was worse than he'd thought. He awaited a response, but none came. Which was unusual, considering John always at least showed some sign of acknowledgement. "Have you had breakfast yet? You should eat before anything else."

It was a genuine suggestion, but also another little test to see if he could ask if he was okay or not. There were some situations where it would draw some kind of positive response, and other situations where it would only make it worse. This might be one where it made it worse.

Still no response of any kind from John. He had already started the flicking of the lighter, which probably meant he was still calming down somewhat. Which implied that it was still fresh in his mind, and he likely couldn't stop thinking about it.

Establishing physical contact to get his attention might be a bad approach, considering he already looked on edge. Bobby didn't want to startle him, because he was still collecting himself.

Eventually, he settled for; "You know what you need? Some coffee. Come on, we're going to the kitchen." He got up from his seat, and offered John a hand. John hesitantly took it, and allowed Bobby to pull him along.

This too, was a bad sign. John would normally walk all on his own to ascertain his brooding aura, but it seemed that he lacked the motivation to even do that. Oddly enough, John's hands were cold, which couldn't be good.

In better lighting, Bobby noticed he was a little paler than usual, and his eyes were glazed over, reflecting how dead inside he felt. The best course of action at the moment would be to get him a nice hot cup of coffee and engage in small talk. Perhaps that would encourage him to speak, or at least make some sort of sound.

It was almost creepy how silent he was. The situation was worse than he'd originally anticipated.

Bobby paused, wondering why he thought in such an esteemed manner in these situations. Like he was dealing with a battle plan or something. It was almost funny that he was like this, but he didn't have time to dwell on those thoughts. He had a crisis on his hands.

After guiding John to the island, and suggesting he take a seat, Bobby began preparing the coffee, keeping a close eye on John. He looked so... disturbed. Whatever he had experienced, Bobby knew that he could never imagine it.

"Hey, so... what's up?" He began. John didn't respond. Bobby waited until the machine finished dispensing the coffee and slid it over to John. He then took a seat next to him, looking at him expectantly. "Didn't sleep well?"

"Guess you could say that." John croaked, his voice cracking a little. He was quiet, and Bobby had only barely heard him.

"...Wanna talk about it?"

John sighed. "It's stupid."

"It's not stupid if it had this affect." Bobby pointed out. John rolled his eyes, and didn't say anything else. "Nothing you say is going to change my opinion of you, you know. I'm here to listen."

"Just leave it." He grumbled, getting up from his seat and stalking out the door. Bobby was glad that, at the very least, he took his coffee with him. But his mission was still incomplete. There had to be some way to help him out.

Instead of paying attention in class, he observed John's behavior throughout the day. He was quiet and reserved, hardly paying attention himself. He was staring off into space, lost in his own thoughts.

There was no way Bobby was just going to 'leave it'. Not after he'd gotten this far. Tapping his pencil in frustration, he thought long and hard about his next move. He'd already messed up and made John more upset. So he needed to be extra careful.

An idea popped into his head suddenly. _Yeah... that fountain out front is big enough... I just need to talk him into it, which might be the tricky part. But I think I can do this. After all, it's a great way to clear someone's head. At least, for me it is-_

"Bobby!" He was snapped out of his thoughts by Storm's voice. Storm was looking at him funny, along with most of the class. "You need to pay attention. Is something wrong?"

"N-no, I'm alright." Bobby assured her, immediately feeling embarrassed. "Sorry."

"Are you sure? You seemed very distracted by something." Storm crossed her arms and leaned against the blackboard, which meant she was awaiting an actual explanation.

"Really, it's nothing." He replied, beginning to become uncomfortable. "I, uh, believe you were talking about the Cold War?" Storm looked at him in surprise.

"Oh. Yes, yes I was. My apologies." She said, uncrossing her arms and picking the chalk back up. "I'd still like to talk to you after class." Bobby noticed her glance at John, and he knew exactly what they were going to be talking about. "Right then! As I was saying, the Berlin Crisis of 1961..."

Only a few minutes passed before John asked to use the bathroom. He got up and left, though the end of class was pretty close as is. Only ten more minutes or so. Bobby watched him go with his eyes, curious if he was really going to the bathroom or not.

Ten minutes seemed like an hour to Bobby as he stared at the clock impatiently, tapping his pencil in anticipation. A minute passed. Then two. Then three. Four... five... six... seven.

John wasn't back, and there was only three minutes remaining. Bobby knew something had to be wrong. Who on earth took seven minutes in the bathroom? Eight, actually.

When the bell finally rang, everyone got up, and Bobby was the first. He was ready to book it and try to find John, but Storm caught him before he left, pulling him back into the classroom.

After everyone had gone, she shut the door and looked him dead in the eyes. "Both you and John couldn't seem to pay attention today. Pretty sure both of you went to bed late last night. Coincidence? I think not. I'm not trying to pry, but... what were you two doing?"

"What?" Bobby cocked an eyebrow at her. "We were in our own rooms last night."

"Uh-huh, sure... I'm not here to judge you or anything, okay?" Storm's voice was low, so only Bobby could hear her, just in case anyone was listening at the door. The kids tended to do that. "But maybe don't... do things on school nights, okay?"

"Do... things?" Bobby remained completely confused. What the heck was she talking about? "Look, I don't know what's up with John either, that's what I'm trying to figure out myself."

"Well, after... things, he could still be in pain. Though I don't think I saw him limping... I don't know," Storm thought for a moment. "It never occurred to me that John would be the one... well, 'on the receiving end'."

It finally dawned on Bobby what she thought was going on. His jaw dropped. "WHAT!?!" He exclaimed loudly, a higher pitch due to his disbelief. "Ms. Munroe! What the actual- I don't- _what_?! We didn't do anything last night! We were in separate rooms! I was asleep, I'm pretty sure he was asleep, neither of us left our rooms, and we certainly didn't- well, you know."

"Okay! Okay, I'm sorry!" Storm threw up her hands in surrender. "I didn't mean to assume, I just kinda thought that the two of you were already dating."

"Already?"

"Ah, but you remain oblivious." She patronizingly pat him on the head. "Well then, what's up with John?"

Bobby stared at her for a moment before deciding to forget she ever said anything. "I need to go." He turned on his heels and marched out of there without another word.

"Wait, I'm sorry!" The doors shut behind him, muffling whatever else Storm tried to say. Bobby really didn't want to hear it anyway. He was almost horrified that his teacher thought they'd...

 _TIME TO THINK OF SOMETHING ELSE!_ His mind suddenly drowned out everything else. _Okay, refocus on finding John._

Of course, he first visited every bathroom in the school (they were all gender neutral). After the first few around the floor the classroom was on without any luck, he wondered why he hadn't found him yet. Why would he go to a bathroom on a different floor, so far from the classroom?

While searching the school, he got a few strange looks from other students for some reason. Many who passed him in the hall avoided his vicinity, shivering and moving faster.

He briefly wondered what that was about, but ignored it for the most part. As he hurried down the halls, searching to no avail, he began to notice he could see his own breath. Odd, it couldn't be that cold.

Unfortunately, he needed to get to his next class. John would be there, surely. He may be a troublemaker, but he never skipped classes. Heading up the stairs to his next class, he wondered if John was avoiding him.

The rest of the day continued the same. John showed up to class, but seemingly disappeared afterwards. Bobby would try to catch him on his way out, but he never succeeded.

Finally getting fed up, he practically gave in. He had hardly seen him all day. No one talked to him, or went near him for some reason. Until Kitty sat down next to him and suddenly yelped in surprise.

"Jesus Christ! Why is the air around you so frickin' cold?!" She exclaimed, scooting a little ways away. Bobby cocked an eyebrow at her. "I notice you looked a little bothered, but it's worse than I thought, huh."

"I'm not bothered." Bobby lied. "I'm perfectly fine."

"Yeah, no. You're clearly not." She narrowed her eyes at him. "Is this because John has been avoiding you? What did you screw up this time?"

"He hasn't been- okay, maybe he has, but I don't think _I_ did anything." Bobby replied, trying to control the temperature around him. "He's just having a rough day, and doesn't want my sympathy or help."

"So... what are you going to do about it?" Kitty risked moving closer again so she could lower her voice. "You're not just going to let him suffer, are you? 'Cause if you're going to do something, do it now, he just passed the doorway!"

Before Bobby could utter a word, she shoved him off the couch and towards the doorway, giving him an extra push to help him regain his balance. He didn't hesitate to rush out the door.

John had his hands in his pockets, humming to himself, and dragging is feet a little. Bobby wasn't going to tolerate that. He hurried to his side, careful with his footsteps so he didn't hear him until he was close enough for him not to hurry away.

" _There_ you are!" Bobby heaved a sigh, catching John's wrist before he tried to escape. "I have been worried sick, looking all over for you! Come on; I want to show you something!"

"I- you- what?" John sputtered, getting pulled along down the hall. He yanked his wrist free. "Bobby, you don't have to try to make my day better, or help me, or whatever you're trying to do. I told you to leave it, didn't I?"

"Do I look like a dog to you? I don't know that command." Bobby joked, retaking his hand, gently this time. "And I know you don't want me to. But just trust me on this, okay?"

"This isn't Aladdin, Bobby." John rolled his eyes. "I really just need to turn in early. I need rest. It's been a long day."

"Actually, it's been a seemingly short day for me." Bobby shrugged. "Come on, I promise you won't regret it. If this doesn't work, I'll leave you alone. Deal?"

John stared at him with an annoyed look, but he knew Bobby wasn't going to budge. "Ugh, fine. But if I fall asleep on you, that's on you. Literally and figuratively." Bobby smiled brightly at him, continuing to pull him along.

As they approached the back entrance of the school, John gave him another look, this time of confusion.

"Where are we going?" He asked skeptically. "I'm pretty sure we aren't allowed out here at night."

"What, are you afraid to break some rules? I thought your motto was 'rules are meant to be broken'." Bobby teased, squeezing his hand reassuringly. "Don't worry, we won't get caught."

John didn't dignify that with a response. He instead pushed the door open for Bobby, as if he took that last statement as a challenge. "Alright then, I'm down for Mr. Perfect breaking a couple rules."

"Oh, and all those practical jokes on the teachers, mostly Scott, didn't count? Even the one with those cacti, the rubber bands, and the balloons?" Bobby clarified. "I am a rule-breaking king by now, John."

John snorted, not taking him seriously in the slightest. "Those pranks were a far cry from 'breaking the rules'. You know you're breaking the rules when all that weight on your shoulders is lifted, and you feel light as air."

"I don't think that's quite how that feels..." Bobby laughed.

"It is. When you've been forced to follow rules your entire life, never allowed to break a single one without terrible consequences, and you finally break a rule, you feel free as a bird." John shut him down immediately, staring up at the already starry night sky. "You see that? Just looking up at them was breaking a rule."

"Well, you can forget about rules, responsibilities, and everything else tonight." Bobby told him, guiding him to the fountain in the garden. He touched the surface of the water with his fingertips, turning all of it to ice in a second. John looked at him in confusion.

"You have _got_ to be kidding me."

"Come on, it'll be fine!" Bobby grinned, forming skates at the bottom of his own shoes. "Are you ready?"

"Absolutely not-"

The ice already took shape on his shoes, and he nearly fell over. Bobby caught him, keeping him steady. "It's not that hard. Have you never gone ice skating before?"

John looked at him like he'd asked the stupidest question of all time. "Obviously not."

"Oh. Right." Bobby stepped up onto the ice, and offered John a hand. John contemplated for a minute or two, before ultimately accepting that he would not stay standing for long if he didn't take his hand. Carefully stepping up with him, John immediately felt like he was going to face plant into the ice and break his nose.

"How do people do this?" He glared down at his skates, trying hard to stay balanced. Bobby chuckled to himself, but tried not to let John see. "Better question; _why_ do people do this?"

"Because it's fun." Bobby replied with a smile, holding his hand a little tighter. "It really isn't that hard. Just follow my lead." He pulled him along, and John gripped his hand harder. "You're not gonna fall, relax."

"Okay, but when I _do_ fall, I'm blaming you." John frowned at him, his legs shaking a little.

"You're not going to fall." Bobby repeated, starting to skate forward, pulling John along. He could see John was nervous, but at least he'd succeeded in forgetting what he was thinking about before. "It just takes a little practice. I wasn't always good at it either."

"Oh, that's reassuring." John rolled his eyes, trying to copy Bobby's footwork. "I'll never get the hang of this."

"Well not with that attitude you won't." Bobby teased, skating around the center of the fountain. "You gotta put your whole body into it."

"I don't think my entire body will fit in a pair of ice skates." John replied, making Bobby laughed. "Okay, but seriously, it's not as easy as you make it out to be."

"That's okay." Bobby shrugged. "You don't need to be good at it. You just need to not let go of my hand. You can do that, can't you?"

"Gladly!" John sighed in relief. "I thought you were going to tell me to do it on my own. If I let go, I'm definitely going to fall."

"You seem so afraid of falling, when it's not even that big a deal if you _do_ fall." Bobby pointed out. "Tell you what; if you fall, I'll catch you. Okay? That way, the only thing bruised will be your ego."

"Ha ha, very funny." John played it off casually, though his cheeks had gone red. "Like your clumsy ass would have the reaction time for that. I've seen you in battle. And I'm not impressed."

"That's not a fair comparison, considering you're so on edge during battle, you react if the enemy takes a single step." Bobby countered. "It's not my fault I wait to see their next move."

"Yeah, well if you saw their next move as you claim, you wouldn't be flat on your back all the time." John shot back with a smirk. Bobby rolled his eyes, but knew he was right. He never let that go.

"If I weren't here, _you'd_ be the one lying flat on your back." Bobby finished. John scoffed, but didn't continue the banter. Because this time, Bobby was right. And he knew it. Bobby smiled triumphantly.

They skated in a brief silence (well, more like Bobby was skating and just dragging John with him, trying to prevent him from falling over). He noticed John seemed to have finally relaxed, despite hardly being able to remain standing. Which meant his plan had worked.

"Hey... uh, Bobby?" Bobby looked over at John, who seemed to be fidgeting nervously. Odd. Was he remembering things? Had the plan actually failed? "If I had a secret that you might hate me for, would you still want to hear it?"

"Huh? John, I could never hate you." Bobby chuckled. "You can tell me anything. Nothing you ever say or do could ever change my opinion of you."

"Oh. I see." John hesitated, still nervous. Bobby's curiosity was now piqued, and he wondered what John was going to say. "Well then. If you're so sure... I-"

"Mr. Drake and Mr. Allerdyce!" The two of them jumped apart, causing John to fall off the fountain, and Bobby quickly grabbed his hand before he landed on his butt. Helping him regain his balance, the pair looked over to see Cyclops walking over to them.

"Great. Here comes Professor Party-Pooper." John grumbled. Bobby snickered. 

"Why are you two out here this late? You both should be heading to bed right about now." He crossed his arms. Though they couldn't see his eyes, they could tell he was glaring at them.

"Yeah? Well what are _you_ doing out here this late? Hm?" John countered.

"As a matter of fact, looking for the two of you. Some of the other students said they saw you go out here." Cylcops replied. "You should both know it's-"

"-Against the rules, we know. That's kinda the point." John finished for him. "Sheesh, you'd think you'd know that by now, since you've known us for years."

"I don't appreciate the tone your taking with me."

" _I_ don't appreciate you sticking your nose into other people's business."

"John..." Bobby warned him in a low voice. John rolled his eyes but backed down. "We're sorry, Professor Summers." John scoffed. "We lost track of time, I guess. It won't happen again."

"Thank you, Bobby." Cyclops relaxed a bit, then noticed the fountain was frozen. "And could you melt the ice please?"

John flicked the cap off his lighter and first melted his ice skates so he could walk normally again, before engulfing the entire fountain in flames. Bobby simply shattered his ice skates against the walkway, not paying the fountain a second glance.

When he put out the fire by clenching his fist, the water was bubbling, steam rising from it. The stone was somehow scorched. Cyclops glared at him. "Oops." John shrugged, knowing full well he did that on purpose. "Whelp, see you tomorrow, Professor!"

He and Bobby walked off, feeling the cold glare still on them as they headed for the door. "So... what were you saying before he interrupted?"

"It was nothing." John mumbled, quickening his pace. Bobby decided to leave it. If John didn't want to tell him, fine.

It couldn't be that important anyway.


	5. Jealous

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bobby notices John doesn't seem to get along with Rouge

They got new mutants so often, John hardly cared to meet each one. While, of course, it was wonderful to meet even more people like him, he was never the most social person. In fact, he hated making small talk.

This one, however, interested him. Not the girl, because she was around their age. But the man. Since when did they start getting full grown adults here? He looked like he was in his late thirties, maybe early forties. But from what he'd overheard, he was way older. Possibly older than the professor.

While his attention was on the man, he'd completely overshadowed the girl. More importantly, how close she was getting to Bobby. The first incident was her first day of class.

John had thought it'd be fun to show off a little, and made a ball of fire in his hand to give her an idea of his abilities. Bobby had frozen it, and it shattered. No big deal, John had seen that coming. That was the actual reason he'd done it.

What Bobby did next surprised him. He made an ice rose on her desk along with a couple words of welcome. Excuse you? An _ice rose_? That was what Bobby had done for him! He'd never done that for someone else before.

_Calm down, John. That doesn't_ matter. He told himself. _He's just being extra, is all. Showing off. Like you were. Perfectly normal._ He'd have to keep an eye on her, just in case.

After classes were over for the day, John practically forgot about the incident. While passing a door on his way to his dorm, he heard talking. Pausing at the door, he listened in.

"--e have reasons to believe that Magneto is after you for some reason. I recommend you stay here while we investigate the matter further." That was Professor X. He must've been talking to that man.

As he continued to listen, he learned that the man's name was Logan, but he rather be referred to as Wolverine. Cool name. He tried not to think much since Professor X would be able to hear him. It was likely he already knew he was there.

It sounded like his mutation was regeneration, and there was some kind of experiment on him putting some kind of metal in him. John shuddered, realizing this was a man who knew pain like him. He felt the man's intimidation diminish.

"You know it's rude to eavesdrop, John." John yelped in surprise and fell back at Professor X's voice appearing in his head. He quickly scrambled to his feet and booked it, running around the corner to hide.

He ended up slamming into someone, who he recognized immediately as Bobby. He didn't even have to look at him, it was just how freezing he was to the touch. The two crashed to the ground.

"Ow, hey!" Bobby looked up and relaxed. "Oh, John! I was looking for you! ...Who are you running from this time?"

"Huh? I don't think there's anyone chasing me, I just got caught eavesdropping- ANYway, why were you looking for me?" John got off of Bobby and offered him a hand. He took it and hoisted himself to his feet. It was then that he noticed the girl from earlier. His eyes narrowed. "Oh. You."

"Uh... hi?" She said back, taking a step back nervously.

"Hey, don't be nervous." Bobby spoke softly to her, which annoyed John. His eyebrow twitched. "He doesn't bite."

"Necessarily." John added.

Bobby rolled his eyes. "This is John, my best friend." He introduced, then turned to John. "John, this is Rouge."

"The new girl. Yeah, I know." He growled. Bobby furrowed his brows at him in confusion. "Oh, heh. I messed up your hair when I ran into you. Here, let me just-" John fixed it for him, made threatening direct eye contact with Rouge, and walked past them.

"Wow, he seems like a pleasant person." Rouge said sarcastically. John listened from around the corner.

"Weird. He's never like that with newcomers. Actually, he's usually super welcoming, and treats them like their already friends." Bobby pointed out. "Maybe... you look like someone he knows?"

"Then why would he act so hostile?" Rouge questioned.

"Hostile is a strong word. And let's just say he didn't have a pleasant childhood." Bobby replied. 

"Oh really? I didn't have the greatest childhood either. What was his like?"

"If he wants you to know, he'll tell you." Bobby answered. "Though I'd advise not bringing it up."

"So it sounds like you've known him for a long time." She acknowledged. 

"Yeah, we've known each other since we were both ten. Professor Summers had brought him here, but the two of them don't have a great relationship." Bobby chuckled. "I only became his friend because I was caught eavesdropping on Professor X and their's conversation, so Xavier had me keep an eye on him and make sure he didn't set anything or anyone on fire."

"So he wasn't a very pleasant child." She frowned.

"He apparently had trust issues, so it took a while before he was willing to become anyone else's friend. Or even talk to them, really." Bobby recalled. "But he's come a long way since then."

"Has he really?" Rouge frowned. "Well, I hope he warms up to me eventually."

John scoffed, then continued his way to the elevator. He sighed, and leaned against the back wall. Just after the door closed, Kitty stepped through and into the elevator.

"Phew! Thought I missed it." She gasped like she'd been running. "Oh hey John!" 

"Hey, Kitty." He grumbled.

"Ooh, someone's grumpy! I'm surprised Bobby's not already all over your case. What happened?" She inquired, standing next to him. "Are you avoiding Bobby again? Did he do something stupid? Do I need to knock some sense into him? With my fists? Or my foot?"

"Don't get ahead of yourself, Kitty." John chuckled. "It's got nothing to do with him. I just don't like that new girl."

"What? Rouge?" Kitty looked at him like he was insane. "She's great! She's super nice, though a little shy. Can't imagine why you don't like her. You always welcome newcomers."

"I just don't... trust her."

"Around Bobby?" Kitty finished. He looked at her in surprise. "Pah-lease. I noticed the two of them walking together, talking together- even that little ice rose gesture. Bobby's being pretty welcoming, so I don't see why you don't... wait... ooh, someone's jealous~"

"Me? Jealous?" John laughed. "Never. I don't have to like everybody y'know."

"Oh, I know. You kinda hate everyone other than Bobby, but you tolerate them 'cause they're mutants." Kitty deduced. "You just have people you hate less than others. Like me, hopefully."

"Replace 'hate' with 'don't care about' and you got it." John corrected. "I don't even really like this school in the first place. But it's not like I have any other place to go, even if I wanted to leave."

"That, and Bobby would be a miserable mopey baby without you, and you know it." Kitty added. "Like that one time you blacked out during training and he thought you were dead and started freaking out."

"Is that why I woke up to him crying? I thought something had actually happened to me." John sighed. "I was out for... like, seventeen hours, I think. I'm pretty sure it was because I hadn't slept in a couple days."

"Oh really? Why?" Kitty asked.

"Dunno. I think it had something to do with my mind being a mess." John shrugged. "Just couldn't manage to shut my eyes for a long time."

"Weird." Kitty frowned. The elevator dinged, and the door opened, so they walked out together. "Well, I think everyone's had one or two nights like that in their life. More than that maybe."

"Yeah, that's what I thought too. But Professor Munroe said it wasn't, and we had a long awkward talk about it where she kept asking if I was okay." John shrugged. "Not sure what she wants me to say to that, but oh well."

"Riiiiiiiiiiiight." Kitty looked at him skeptically. "Alright then, let's stop avoiding the real issue here. How are you going to talk to Bobby?"

"What do you mean?" John squinted at her like she was dumb. "I talk to him all the time."

"I mean about Rouge. Are you going to try and dodge around him asking why you don't like her, or are you going to tell him the real reason?" Kitty inquired.

"What 'real reason'?" John was afraid to ask, but did anyway.

"Obviously that you're in love with him." Kitty rolled her eyes. John tensed. "Don't say you aren't. I know you already tried confessing to him once. Too bad Professor Summers interrupted..."

"Wait, how did you know about that?" John glared at her.

"Simple. I wait and observe." Kitty shrugged it off like it wasn't creepy at all. "But you have to tell him sooner or later. You can't go your whole life keeping it hidden from him."

"Yes I can." John countered. "I don't have to say anything to him about it. He can remain oblivious his entire life, and I can take it to my grave."

"But why would you want that?" Kitty exclaimed. "You two could live a happy and fulfilling life together if you just took the chance! You'd also never have a water bill with your powers, so... bonus."

"You've really thought this out, haven't you." John sighed.

"Why yes, I have. Here's what I've gathered so far," She cleared her throat, and John felt dread claw at his stomach. "Check it; after becoming X-men and working with the team to restore peace and order to society, you two settle down somewhere in the suburbs away from any drama. Then you two either adopt a dog and two cats, or a child. It depends how long restoring peace and order takes. I hope not too long, because I want to be the cool aunt/godmother of that child. Then-"

"You can stop right there." John interrupted. "Clearly, you've overlooked the high chance that he _doesn't_ like me, and we forever live in awkwardness, slowly drifting apart until we completely forget about one another, and I return to the streets while he lives a happy life without me."

Kitty started laughing suddenly, which startled John. "The _high chance_? Boy, he's not the only oblivious one! You two are too much." John was genuinely confused. "Whatever; forget it. I'll talk to you later, k?"

"Um... o-kay..."

She opened the door to her room and entered, shutting it tightly behind her. John continued his way down the hall to his own dorm, feeling more awkward than he had previously. Kitty was a crazy, crazy woman.

~

It probably hadn't been much more than two days that Rouge had been there, and John hated her even more than he had before. Did she do something bad? No. Did she provoke him in any way? Not knowingly.

But her friendship with Bobby was progressing so quickly, and John was not okay with that. It was true; she was a great person, with a great sense of humor and was super nice. And yet John couldn't stop hating her.

In fact, it made him hate her more. What annoyed him the most, though, was how delicately she spoke to him, on the rare occasion she did. John refused to say a word to her, but she talked to him like he was a ticking time bomb, about to explode.

She underestimated him, and didn't think anything of him other than that he was a troublemaker. She tried to talk to him to get to know him, but he flat out ignored her.

He refused to do anything with her. Whether it be work with her, or, nowadays, even look at her sometimes. The first time he looked directly at her in a while was during training.

Previously, he'd overheard her talking with Bobby about him.

"I just don't get why he doesn't like me." She grumbled, crossing her arms. "I have been nothing but kind to him, but he's just so... rrgh, frustrating! I'm trying to be his friend, but he doesn't even look at me half the time I speak to him!"

"Give him time." Bobby advised her calmly. "He has to warm up to you eventually. He's never been very good about listening, let alone working with people. And he doesn't take orders very well, in case you didn't notice."

"So he's a stubborn, arrogant lone-wolf type of guy? How on earth did you two become friends?" She scoffed.

"We bounce nicely off each other, I guess. We're a team, a dynamic duo." Bobby explained. "It's just how we are. But once he breaks down his walls, I'm sure we'd be an awesome trio."

John had half a mind to come out of his hiding place and slap Bobby across the face for suggesting such a thing, but he used his self control. He would never willingly work with Rouge, even for Bobby.

He hurried to join the rest of the X-men in training (who there weren't that many of), and was shortly followed by Bobby and Rouge.

The X-men program was for those who wanted to use their lives to fight for a better world. Since that was the entire reason John had chosen to stay (other than for Bobby), he'd been ecstatic to join.

Of course, him and Bobby had talked to Xavier about it together, and he told them they had to wait until they were at least thirteen, so that was exactly what they'd done. They trained side by side from then on, taking names and kicking ass.

Kitty had joined as well, along with Piotr and a few other kids. Though most of those other kids ended up quitting. And now Rouge had decided to join. John just hoped she'd end up giving up too.

But until then, he'd have to deal with having her there, generally being bad and a nuisance. They'd had previous lessons teaching them about battle styles and simple fighting tactics that would give them the advantage against non-experienced fighters. And unfortunately, Rouge was a fast learner.

Today's lesson was to be their first team battle against the Sentinel robots of the year. And Rouge's first ever. Bobby and John locked eyes, sharing the knowledge that they had this in the bag. They had trained together for so long, they could read each other's movement and predict their next move, along with how they could assist the other.

Which aided in them becoming a force to be reckoned with. They were like two halves of the same person on the battlefield. John just hoped Rouge wouldn't get in the way of that. 

"Nice teamwork today, guys!" Storm complimented them. "That combo attack at the end there was really impressive, by the way." John and Bobby fist bumped. "With your skills, the two of you might make an unstoppable duo one day."

"Or power couple." Kitty whispered to John, who rolled his eyes in response. _Yeah. Except for those several times when Rouge kept messing me up when I was trying to assist Bobby. God, she never seems to know where to move her feet!_

"I'd say we have a great team with a lot of potential in the future." Jean agreed (with Storm). "Rouge, you've really progressed in only a few days. Piotr, I'm impressed with how far your strength has come. And Kitty! Such clever ways to use your power."

"Teamwork is vital." Scott nodded. "I'm glad you finally accepted that, John." Rouge snorted sarcastically. "To an extent."

"So... we're done, right? For the day?" Bobby clarified. The professors looked at him oddly.

"Yes...?" Storm replied in confusion.

"Cool. John, a word, please?" Bobby took John by the wrist and pulled him away from the group. Kitty shot him a thumbs up, and suddenly John was afraid she did something.

He didn't just stop at around the corner. He brought him all the way down the hall, around another corner, up a flight of stairs, down another hall, and _into his dorm room._ Whatever was about to happen, John prayed it wasn't something Kitty had talked to him about.

They sat next to each other on the bed in silence. John felt awkward, like he'd done something wrong. He hated uncomfortable silences. 

"What is going on between you and Rouge?" Bobby asked finally.

" _That's_ what this is about?" John exhaled a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. "Nothing's 'going on' between us, Bobby. I don't have to get along with everybody."

"I know you don't, but you seem to have hated her from the moment you met her. What's up with that?" Bobby pressed further. 

"I just don't like her. It's that simple." John answered.

"There has to be some kind of reason. She's been kind and friendly to you. And you repay that with cold silence and dirty looks." Bobby pointed out. "And if you do talk to her, it's something rude or unnecessary. You don't just hate people for no reason."

"I have my reasons. Doesn't mean I have to explain them to you." John dodged around the accusation. "I plead the fifth."

"Ha ha, very funny. But I'm being serious, John." Bobby narrowed his eyes. "If I don't know your reasoning, I can't change it. I want you two to get along, because it's awful to be friends with both of you, knowing that you hate each other."

"Whelp, guess you know what you gotta do." John shrugged.

"And I'm not going to stop being friends with either of you." Bobby said sternly. "I shouldn't have to choose sides."

"I guess... you're right. That isn't fair to you." John admit reluctantly. "I just don't trust her. Especially not around you. I... don't want you to get hurt."

Bobby sighed, then smiled. "I appreciate your concern, but I don't think she's going to hurt me. And even if she does, I'll be fine. A hunch is no reason to hate someone, though. Can you at least try to get along? For me?"

"UGH, fine." John grumbled. "How much do I have to get along with her?"

"At the very least, talk to her if she talks to you. Acknowledge her existence." Bobby answered. "And please, please stop giving her threatening looks."

"That's asking for a lot. Cut out talking to her, and we've got a deal." John replied. Bobby gave him a stern look. "I'm kidding! I'll do it. But this doesn't mean I have to like it."

"Duly noted." Bobby nodded. "And I know that you were annoyed about how she kept... interfering with some of our combos, but she was just trying to help. You've got to be patient with her, like she's being patient with you."

"Patience isn't my strong suit." John reminded him. "But... for you... I'll try. I don't want her thinking we're friends or anything. Just acquaintances. Or less."

"Well, thank you." Bobby sighed with relief. "And who knows? You might change your mind about her."

"Don't get your hopes up, frosty." John scoffed. "I still don't like her. The moment she does something that I really don't like, I'm going back to how I was before. Got that?"

"Alright, fine. But it would have to be something really, really bad." Bobby replied. "And not a simple mistake. Because it wouldn't be fair, considering you've made plenty mistakes in battle before."

"Not nearly as many as _you_ though." John teased. "When you first started, you were like a baby deer trying to walk across a swaying bridge above a fifty meter drop into a coursing river."

"Wow. That is so specific. I can't imagine what you could possibly be referencing." Bobby frowned at him, knowing full well he was making fun of Bobby's fear of heights. Which he'd discovered because they once were on a balcony on a higher floor and Bobby threw up because his head was spinning too fast. John never let that go.

"Not my fault I'm right." John shrugged. "So does this mean we're done here? Can I go now?"

"Yeah, sorry." Bobby chuckled sheepishly. "Didn't mean to keep you."

"No, it's fine." John replied, heading for the door.

"And... I'm sorry if I haven't been a good friend to you since Rouge arrived." John stopped, hand on the doorknob. "I just want you to know... you're still my best friend. There is nothing that could get in the way of that. Not Rouge, not anything."

John hesitated before speaking. "I... I know. I trust you."

Without another word, he exited the room. The moment he closed the door behind him, he smiled. How stupid of him to think some girl was going to get in the way of their friendship.

Maybe Kitty was right. Maybe he had a chance. A _good_ chance. Just that knowledge alone was enough to widen his smile into a grin. He'd have to say something sooner or later. Just not today.

But he had a good feeling about the future.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if this seemed half-assed. I'm just getting really excited about making the next work, because that's when things get really complicated and interesting. ;)


End file.
